041-060 · 042-ch36

Chapter 36: A New Journey and Casual Chat as Always

The day after welcoming a large number of viewers for the first time.

Since I've already finished preparing for the journey the other day, today I plan to have breakfast, make lunch, and head out on my adventure right away.

This time, after going straight in a direction perpendicular to the pseudo-World Tree, I intend to wander wherever my interests take me.

Previously, I avoided straying toward distant points of interest for fear of losing my way.

"Alright, it's done, Robo."

Today I made something extravagant—spaghetti topped with plenty of meatballs that look like they came straight out of an anime.

Robo's portion is an extra-large size, enough to fill a big pot.

Well, extravagant as it may be, Robo hunts something almost every day, so we eat a considerable amount of meat daily anyway.

After finishing that, I'll turn the large amount of cooked rice into rice balls.

And separately, I'll grill a large amount of meat and glaze it with yakiniku sauce.

Just this alone smells incredible.

After that, I just need to pack everything into containers, draw preservation magic circles on them, and channel magic power through them to complete lunches that won't spoil until noon.

"Hey! Robo, that's for lunch! You just ate!"

As I was wrapping the rice balls to pack them in a bag, Robo was nudging the container of meat with his nose.

Honestly, this guy never lets his guard down.

By the way, since I've had the stream running since morning, this scene is being broadcast live to living rooms on the surface.

>>He's totally like a pet

>>My dog does the exact same thing...

>>Even at that size, I found it adorable

>>Big dogs are the best!

Overall, Robo seems to be well-received.

Well, unless someone really hates animals, it's hard to dislike them enough to leave aggressive comments, even if you dislike humans.

After that, I had Robo carry the luggage on his back while I shouldered my spear, and preparations for departure were complete.

"Alright then, I'm off."

>>Have a safe trip

>>Be careful out there~

>>See ya~

>>Well, the drone will be following you anyway

"That it will."

I continued walking leisurely along the path toward my chosen direction.

Since I'm at it, this time I flew the drone at high altitude so the scenery from above is visible.

>>Whoa, it's all nature...

>>Isn't that the big one from when you went to the World Tree over there?

>>Looking at it this way, there don't seem to be as many monsters as in the dungeon

>>So they roam in herds here and there

>>Are there any vicious ones?

"Aggressive monsters don't seem to approach the exit area from that dungeon. That's why I set up my base there. So I was pretty surprised when that dragon from the World Tree approached us before."

>>That was definitely surprising

>>You didn't look surprised at all though

>>A dragon that takes human form, truly fantasy-like

>>Haven't you had any contact with that dragon since then?

"No, nothing. Though I do want to visit again sometime and ask various things."

As we walked while having such conversations.

Though this will be a long journey, there are so many comments coming in that the conversation surprisingly never dies out.

Among them, I found a comment that caught my interest.

>>Oh, by the way, apparently an explorer in America broke through to the deep layer

>>Japan is sending a large-scale party to catch up. Those two are apparently part of it

>>I honestly think they're not skilled enough though

>>Recently all the Dan-Sta members have been rapidly improving their skills

"Wait a moment, who are those two? We're talking about people I know, right?"

Since I had no idea what they were referring to, I interrupted the conversation I was in the middle of and turned my attention to that series of comments.

>>Is it okay to mention names?

>>This guy can only exchange information through stream comments anyway, so it should be fine, right?

>>Amamiya Kanata and Hachijoji Akane. The duo John saved

"Ah, those two. Wait, have they already reached a level where they can challenge the deep layer?"

Unlike me, who can level up and strengthen myself through absurd grinding, normal explorers have no choice but to steadily fight monsters, practice combat methods, and raise their skills and levels.

Among them, for those two who seemed somewhat questionable even for solo lower-layer exploration to have trained themselves to deep-layer challenge level in such a short period of about two weeks, they must have pushed themselves into quite a harsh environment.

"Well, I see. I get it now."

Now, I'm a bit torn here.

I can probably guess that the reason they've grown so explosively is the result of strong will, harsh environment, and life-threatening circumstances coming together.

But should I really voice this here?

That would essentially be telling those who want to get stronger: "If you push yourself to the brink of death, you'll grow faster."

If that leads to successful growth, that's fine, but I'm somewhat hesitant about recklessly pushing people toward death's door.

But, as expected, that has nothing to do with me.

My wish is for as many explorers as possible to establish bases within the dungeon, reach the world beyond this dungeon, and begin living here as well.

Therefore, it doesn't matter to me if some explorers lose their lives in the process.

Besides, I'll give proper warnings, and if people still choose to do it and gain strength, that's fine by me.

So, I decide to talk about the mechanism behind how Kanata and Akane—who were already becoming distant memories in my mind—grew so strong.

"I have an idea about why those two got so strong. Anyone want to hear it?"

>>I want to hear!

>>Wouldn't all explorers want to hear that?

>>Did you give them some kind of potion-type item or something?

>>Is there anyone who wouldn't want to hear it?

>>Is there some kind of trick!?

Yes, it seems pretty much everyone wants to hear it, which is a relief.

This way I won't be at fault for telling them.

Well, the decision to use the method I describe is up to the individual anyway, so it's not something I need to worry about.

"First, they challenged opponents who were at least somewhat stronger than them. This is simple when you think about it—which would help you grow more, fighting an opponent with strength 5 or one with strength 10? Additionally, fighting enemies above your rank gives even greater growth."

>>No, that's a bit...

>>I understand the theory, but that's impossible

>>My life is precious... I do want to get stronger, but

>>If I could get stronger safely, I'd choose that instead

>>I won't challenge higher-ranked enemies, but I guess I could try fighting decent opponents

If these were viewers from when I had fewer viewers, the old-timers would probably think more proactively about how to somehow defeat higher-ranked enemies.

Guess it's too much to ask for that level I kept talking about from the beginning.

"Second is strength of will. The strength of your desire to become stronger. This might sound strange, but it's true. It ties into the third point—how much you push yourself into dangerous situations and resist them—but skills and individual levels have walls at certain intervals. Some people overcome them steadily, while others break through in one go. And the latter usually happens when there's an outburst of strong emotions like 'I won't be beaten,' 'I won't lose,' or 'I won't die' in severe, life-threatening situations. The former, on the other hand, takes an enormous amount of time, or they might never overcome it at all."

This is based on my own experience as well.

If I lose here, I'll die. I don't want to die in a place like this. I'll win through sheer stubbornness.

Such feelings ride on top of skills and levels, crossing one limit and making you stronger.

Explorers live in that kind of fantasy world.

>>Suddenly bringing up willpower theories

>>Surely that's not really how it works

>>Even if you could get stronger that way, it's too scary to attempt

>>So betting your life means you're imagining breaking through your limits

>>Truly growth through risking your life

"This is pretty serious based on my experience. Plus, there's proper reasoning behind it. If a level 100 person keeps beating level 1 slimes, their level won't go up, right? To pry open the door of level cap from level 100 to level 101, you need corresponding experience. Something like barely returning alive from the brink of death, or defeating an unbeatable higher-ranked opponent."

I remember saying something similar to the shopkeeper at the material buyback shop before.

Though my wording is slightly different this time, let me share it with the large audience as well.

"You explorers are carefully, carefully exploring, right? Avoiding any need to risk your lives, fighting monsters you can defeat on your own."

But that's not how it should be.

That's not what adventurers are.

"Unless you fight against life-threatening crises by risking your lives, your body, mind, and skills won't overcome a single wall for you."

>>I get what you're trying to say

>>We do mostly fight monsters we can defeat safely

>>So that's why we couldn't break through walls

>>No, but if I can't break through without that, then so be it. It's too scary

>>Did John overcome that?

"I overcame it. Multiple times. Besides, I've been thinking about this."

From here on, it's completely my own theory.

But I'm confident it's not wrong.

That's because I've experienced countless simulated deaths, and each time gained resistance to whatever caused that death.

"Becoming an explorer probably means your body starts adapting to the environment. If you keep taking blows, you can acquire blow resistance skills. If you keep bleeding, you can acquire bleeding resistance or blood loss resistance skills."

Yes, the very existence of resistance skills demonstrates this.

And I'm sure it's the same with attack skills—because attacks aren't effective or are hard to land on enemies, skills adapt and rank up to become more effective.

I think that's how the mechanism works.

"So, if you don't place yourself in harsh environments, your body won't adapt to them, right? If you always stay in lukewarm water."

And finally, I add:

"Come on, explorers, it's time to finally get up from that lukewarm bath. This dungeon is dozens of times harsher than you think. If you don't challenge it, you can't overcome it. If you'd rather stay like children running away from such hardships, then by all means, keep sitting alone in that lukewarm water forever."